OT Better Gear Madness

[rob taft]

With respect, there are jerky car drivers AND just as many jerky bike riders. I have seen it all from bikers. Weaving in and out of traffic within a few feet of cars, often at ridiculously high speeds. Zooming between the lanes in jams and then cutting off cars. Not to mention going around 100+mph.They are just as bad as the bad car drivers. So PLEASE don't lecture anyone about how bikers are somehow above car drivers. Then there's this stuff:

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I wasn't lecturing anyone, and my comment wasn't about MC Riders being "above car drivers", it was in the context of being aware of the everyday dangers of distracted drivers. If you are a distracted MC Rider, you eventually wind up in the hospital or morgue. Being a long time MC rider tends to make one a better car driver which was the point of ST's post.

I deplore the actions of "squids" on the freeway as well as the ridiculously loud cruiser crowd. They give all MC riders a bad name. And help create negative stereotypes.

As far a your video example, I could go on Youtube and for every one like the one you chose, I can find a hundred more of lawbreakers in cars doing similar stunts. Of course there are way more cars on the road so that is to be expected. And yes there are bad, lawbreaking MC riders who endanger other folks by their actions but the vast majority of MC riders including the two in this thread are safety conscious law abiding enthusiasts who share a passion for two wheels.

[Woody Sound]

I wasn't lecturing anyone, and my comment wasn't about MC Riders being "above car drivers", it was in the context of being aware of the everyday dangers of distracted drivers. If you are a distracted MC Rider, you eventually wind up in the hospital or morgue. Being a long time MC rider tends to make one a better car driver which was the point of ST's post.

I deplore the actions of "squids" on the freeway as well as the ridiculously loud cruiser crowd. They give all MC riders a bad name. And help create negative stereotypes.

As far a your video example, I could go on Youtube and for every one like the one you chose, I can find a hundred more of lawbreakers in cars doing similar stunts. Of course there are way more cars on the road so that is to be expected. And yes there are bad, lawbreaking MC riders who endanger other folks by their actions but the vast majority of MC riders including the two in this thread are safety conscious law abiding enthusiasts who share a passion for two wheels.

I agree with you, tnx. It just seemed like you were painting MC riders as generally "safer" than car drivers. Maybe I was wrong. My point was there are stupid and bad in/on all vehicles. I like to consider myself a very safe and alert car driver. In fact, when I see a bike approaching from front or behind, I get extra attentive because I never know what they're going to suddenly do, just like other car drivers.

[TLR]

Because my job was the equivalent of a poor paying apprenticeship (to the point I played in covers bands for cash) it meant I'd no money for a car. So I bought an almost worn out motorcycle from one of the couriers who took rush jobs from us. It was East German, a MZ. On the papers it said 150cc but the bore was (I think) 175cc. I was 17 and had a motorcycle. It lasted about one year. I'm not intimidated by much, but the mentality of some car drivers in the UK means I'll probably never ride a motorcycle here again. And that's a pity, because perhaps my first real taste of freedom was on that tired old bike.

[steve burchfield]

Hobby IS NOT A DIRTY WORD!!! I like watching pilots of various AWESOME AIRCRAFT take the viewer in the cockpit!! THERE ARE OLD PILOTS AND BOLD PILOTS!!! Its fun to ride jumpseat in a corporate jet!! When I was younger I played at a place that did jet interiors KELLOGGS and PLAYBOY had planes there. My father was an air traffic controller and once spoke to John Denver landing a 727!!! When James Brown flew in they mobbed the runways for a while!!

[steve burchfield]

I meant watching on You Tube

[gggguitar]

Lot's of posts about motorcycles here.

When I was in high school I got my first "real" job (that wasn't delivering newspapers or mowing lawns around the neighborhood) washing dishes in a local jazz club so I could be near the music. That was a great experience for me as a musician getting to know the bands and then sitting in pretty often in the late sets.
I got that job also because wanted to save up to buy a myself a motorcycle. I would have loved to have one of those classic 70's BMWs or a Norton Commando 750 or even a mid-70's Honda 750 which was back then on the more affordable end of the spectrum. Alas, college came along and then I grew up to be a broke-ass musician and owning a motorcycle sadly has remained an unfulfilled dream.

However I'm an avid birder and astronomy buff and so have acquainted myself a bit with the vast and deep world of optics.

This is a great thread. I still like to learn about classic motorcycles and I find it often fascinating to learn about the gear talk in these other fields of interest as well. Performance, quality and craftsmanship can be appreciated on many levels.

[rpjazzguitar]

bicycles. motorcycles, cooking, gardening, car restoration

[bmw2002]

There is definitely a Norton Commando 850 shaped hole in my heart due to my passing on a low mileage used one in college (due to being broke). Whenever I mention the “m” word now, my usually indulgent spouse gives me a withering look.

[Hammertone]

Objects of desire are a lovely obsession. I've had the good fortune to be able to collect and play all sorts of guitars and amps that interested me over the years. If I lived outside of a densely populated urban environment, I'd probably collect cars. Sigh...